Jackie Mason, the crusty, self-doubting, enduring comedian who was anointed into pop culture by “The Simpsons,” has died.
Jackie passed Saturday at Mount Sinai Hospital in NYC. His longtime friend Raoul Felder, tells TMZ … Jackie had been hospitalized for more than 3 weeks … admitted with inflammation of the lungs. He had been experiencing a number of health issues over the last few years.
Mason’s comedy career spans 60 years, with some huge successes along with some pretty big bumps along the way.
His big break came in 1960, when he appeared on “The Steve Allen Show” and killed. That led to huge bookings at various clubs and regular TV appearances, including “The Ed Sullivan Show” where he appeared 12 times … and then, disaster struck. In 1964, Mason was on Sullivan’s live show but it was partially preempted by a speech by then-President Lyndon Johnson. When regular programming resumed, Mason was mid-way through his act and Sullivan was already counting him down with his finger “1 minute to go.” Mason responded by looking at audience members, saying “Here’s a finger for you, here’s a finger for you” … and so on.
He was damaged goods after that for years … club owners felt he was “crude and unpredictable.” Mason said, “It took 20 years to overcome what happened in that 1 minute.”
And, there was more … in a 1966 Vegas show, Mason mocked Frank Sinatra’s marriage to young Mia Farrow — “Frank soaks his dentures and Mia brushes her braces.” As the story goes … a gunman pumped a bullet into Mason’s hotel room.
Mason’s comedy was sometimes hilarious … especially when he groused about his self-doubt. He joked, “When I attended a football game, every time the players went into a huddle, I thought they were talking about me.”
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LAST TIME WE SAW HIM
His biggest success came in 1986, with his one-man show “The World According to Me!” … which ran on Broadway for 2 years and earned him a Tony and an Emmy for HBO’s take on the show.
The title of his autobiography underscores his Jewish humor — “Jackie, Oy!”
Mason was the voice of Rabbi Hyman Krustofsky, Krusty the Clown’s dad, on “The Simpsons.”
At the time of his death, Mason was surrounded by his wife, Jyll, and friend, Felder.
He was 93.
RIP
